This invention relates broadly to ice fishing apparatus and, more particularly, pertains to a self-contained system for supporting and encasing a fully assembled fishing rod in respective fishing and storage modes.
The use of ice fishing equipment of known designs and configurations is well known in the prior art. More specifically, ice fishing equipment has been constructed and devised for the purpose of simplifying and improving the fishing process using methods and apparatuses consisting of familiar structural combinations having various features developed for satisfying a large number of objectives and requirements.
Among those ice fishing structures which have been used are U.S. Pat. No. 4,016,670 issued Apr. 12, 1977, U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,233 issued Jun. 21, 1977, U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,387 issued Nov. 4, 1986, U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,286 issued Jun. 14, 1985, U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,333 issued Sep. 24, 1991, U.S. Pat. No. 5,163,243 issued Nov. 17, 1992, U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,080 issued Nov. 30, 1999, U.S. Pat. No. 6,079,142 issued Jun. 27, 2000, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,094,852 issued Aug. 1, 2000.
When fishing with systems of the prior art, a fisherman is alerted of a fish taking his line by the fishing rod end tipping down towards the ice fishing hole which results from the line being pulled. While some of these designs may be folded or otherwise collapsed, none are known to enable self contained or protectively enclosed transport of a fully assembled ice fishing rod and a quick easy conversion to a fishing mode with a minimum of complexity. For those fisherman who carry a group of ice fishing rods, it is desirable to provide a system which will eliminate the common tangling of fishing lines during transport and set up.
Accordingly, it should be appreciated that there is a continued need for a differently constructed ice fishing apparatus which can be utilized to both conveniently support and store an ice fishing rod with a minimum of components and without tools of any kind.
It is one object of the present invention to provide a fishing rod container which is convertible to a fishing rod support for use while fishing.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a self-contained ice fishing system having a set of collapsible and expandable legs.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an ice fishing system which adequately protects and utilizes a fully assembled ice fishing rod.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a tip down ice fishing apparatus equipped with an optional mercury operated, light module for signaling the fisherman during periods of darkness.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an ice fishing system which has a vertically adjustable support for locating the fishing rod relative to an ice fishing hole.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide ice fishing equipment which is of a durable and reliable construction.
Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide an ice fishing system which is susceptible of a low cost of manufacture and sale.
Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a method of retaining an assembled fishing rod in a storage position and a fishing position adjacent a body of water.
In one aspect of the invention, a self-contained fishing system includes a telescopic, tubular fishing rod holder and support tower having an extendable and retractable upper end for pivotally supporting a fishing rod therefrom. Also included in the system is a cavity sized to contain a fishing rod in an assembled condition, and a set of movable legs in a retractable condition. A closure device is removably fastened to an open lower end of the holder and tower for supporting the fishing rod and the movable legs in a storage mode within the cavity. To define a fishing mode, with the upper end extended and the closure device detached, the fishing rod is removed from the cavity and pivotally supported on the upper end, and the legs are removed from the cavity, moved into an extended condition adapted to engage a solid support surface and the closure device is replaced such that the legs support the fishing rod holder and tower.
In another aspect of the invention, an ice fishing apparatus includes an outer tube having an open top end and an open bottom end provided with a removably attached closure device connected to a set of foldable legs movable from a storage position within the outer tube to a fishing position extending from beneath the bottom end upon removal, inversion and reattachment of the closure device. An inner tube has a closed upper end and an open lower end, the inner tube being telescopically mounted in the outer tube such that the inner tube moves between the storage position which is retracted within the top end of the outer tube, and the fishing position in which the upper end is extended from the top end of the outer tube and pivotally supports an assembled fishing rod thereon. The assembled fishing rod is held within the outer and inner tubes and surrounded by the foldable legs in the storage position. The top end of the outer tube includes a locking collar engagable with an upper groove on an outside surface of the inner tube when the inner tube is retracted, and with a lower groove on an outside surface of the inner tube when the inner tube is extended. An inside surface of the outer tube includes a first fixed stop for limiting the movement of the inner tube. An outside surface of the inner tube includes a second fixed stop engagable with the first fixed stop when the inner tube is retracted. The upper end of the inner tube is closed by means of a plug connected to a lanyard for pulling the inner tube when retracted. The top end of the inner tube includes a pair of upwardly extending head portions, each being formed with a downwardly depending notch structure for receiving a pivot pin extending through the fishing rod. The bottom end of the outer tube includes a coupling having internal threads. The closure device is comprised of a leg base having external threads engagable with the internal threads of the coupling. The closure device includes locking structure for holding the legs in the fishing position. The fishing rod has a pair of handles, one on each side of a spool with one of the handles having an extendable rod projecting therefrom. The fishing rod includes a counterweight outside the handle from which the rod projects. The fishing rod further includes a mercury operated, light module inserted in the other of the handles.
The invention also contemplates a method of retaining an assembled fishing rod in a storage position and a fishing position adjacent a body of water. The method includes the steps of providing a tubular, telescopic structure with a movable upper end and a closure device connected to a set of movable legs on a lower end for normally storing the assembled fishing rod and the movable legs in a collapsed condition therein; moving the upper end from a retracted position to an extended position to define a pivotal support for the fishing rod; removing the closure device to enable removal of the fishing rod from the storage position to the fishing position pivotally supported on the upper end of the telescopic structure, and to allow the legs to be moved to an expanded condition; and inverting and reattaching the closure device to the lower end of the telescopic structure such that the legs support the telescopic structure in the fishing position.